Step-by-step guide to Hire a Virtual Assistant in the Philippines

The Best Step by Step Guide To Hire a Virtual Assistant In The Philippines
(w/Free Templates)

Creating More Leverage 

Let me start with a bold statement. Hiring a Virtual Assistant from the Philippines was the best business investment I made this year. 

Growing a business requires the ability to create more leverage. Without leverage you never scale. You never reach the next level. Because you can’t get new clients in fast enough. Whilst doing the existing work at the same time. If you are a service based professional and want to 2X or 3X your business you’ll need an offshore virtual assistant (VA.) Someone that can help you with tasks that either don’t produce revenue or that someone else can do better than you. 

Imagine getting an extra 40 hours of work done for just $2.80 an hour!

Possibly you’ve thought about hiring a virtual assistant before. But don’t know if it’s the right time, what steps to take and in what order. Having been through the process let us help guide you. We’ll show you everything you need to know about the hiring process. 

We’ll take you through every aspect. Both the rationale behind the decision to hire and how to do it correctly. We’ll also ensure you are making the right move. That you will achieve an ROI from taking on an extra staff member. We believe it’s best to hire a virtual assistant from the Philippines for three key reasons. 

A Return On Investment 

Everything we do in business needs to provide us with an ROI. Unless we keep this in mind we will go broke. Here at Eccountability we calculate two different ROI’s. The old fashioned Return On Investment but also your Return On Intellect. How can we do more with less. If there isn’t a strong business case to hire a virtual assistant then you’ll soon regret the decision.

You hire a VA to solve one of these three common problems:

  • Implementation of your next growth phase
  • Work on projects with a bigger profit margin
  • Leverage your time better (work fewer hours)

Two out of three of these will give you a measurable ROI. Working fewer hours will have a more long term benefit. Your sanity and ability to sustain your workload.

There are 6 key stages to go through and the key questions to ask when you’re deciding to hire a virtual assistant.

#1 When is the right time?

Feeling Stretched (not enough hours in the day.) – Working later, on weekends or missing deadlines.

Makes financial sense – You can afford to bring on a VA.

Growth Plans – You have goals and targets you want to achieve

80% Capacity – You are reaching capacity and want to hire before you get too busy

I shouldn’t be… – What are the tasks you are doing that you shouldn’t be doing?

Reactive activities – You don’t have time for longer term planning or implementation

#2 Before your Hire Someone

Calculate their ROI – They need to produce more value than they cost

Mission Critical – Is it urgent enough 

Be Realistic – They won’t be able to do everything

Future Need – Are you hiring for the longer term?

Prepare your Calendar – Block out time to hire, on-board and train them 

Manage Them – Don’t expect them to be immediately self-sufficient or self-motivated

Training – Virtual assistant skills need ongoing upgrades

Access to resources – What tools and software do they need access to

Paid Test Task – As part of the hiring process test their skills

#3 Giving Clear Tasks

Be Specific – What are the core virtual assistant tasks 

Definition of done – Define this for both parties.

How long – Expectation of how long and when it should be finished

Next? – What happens when finished

Correcting errors– Allocate time to correct the work

Keeping Track – Managing the workload

If Not Complete – What is the accountability and responsibility

Systemise the process – Create SOP’s (Standard Operating Processes) as you go

#4 Setting Expectations

90 Days – Approx. time to get up to speed

Start Slow – Don’t overwhelm them with too much too soon

Communication – Have regular meetings

KPI’s – Measure what’s working

Time – Allow a buffer until they improve

Training Guide – What does this look like?

Project Management – What software to use

#5 Training your VA 

Training Every Week – Small improvement will compound

Your Systems – Get feedback on your own process

Replication – What can be replicated or automated

Downtime – How can they fill dead time?

YouTube/Udemy – Which courses would they benefit from?

#6 Common Mistakes

Lack of preparation – Not being ready to allow them to succeed

Mission Critical – Working on the wrong things

Short Sighted – Chasing easy wins not long-term goals

Time – Not allocating enough for them or you

Patience – Expecting too much too soon

Communication – Not learning their style or modifying yours

Training – Not providing enough

Systems – Not having robust systems in pleace

Do the Numbers Stack Up?

The average salary in the Philippines is approx. USD$242. So this is not “slave labour” or a sub-standard wage. When hiring a virtual assistant from the Philippines expect to pay between $250-$750USD PCM. Depending on their experience and the level of complexity of tasks you want done. It’s also the rate for hiring them direct. Using sites like Upwork or Freelancer work out more expensive as there are additional admin fees. 

Now you’ve build a solid business case and worked out your ROI, what virtual assistant skills you need and what outcome you expect. You’ll be confident that the final decision will be the right one.

If you’d like our complete step-by-step guide, including templates for screening survey, interview step plus a water tight contract/offer then download your FREE VA hiring guide

If your virtual assistant frees up your time to scale your business from a one to one-2-one to a one-2-many offer let us show you the exact roadmap to implement one. 

 

Looking to Scale Up, Automate And Create more Freedom?
Come learn exactly how you can achieve this.

About the Author:

Ronan Leonard is a Mastermind facilitator and Mastermind teacher. Connecting entrepreneurs and small business owners together to create the perfect Mastermind groups or teaching self-employed professionals how to run their own groups. Small business owners are often overwhelmed with to-do lists and need impartial advice to get the right support to help them achieve their goals.